


Break Free

by cosmicchaotic (orphan_account)



Category: Stranger Things (TV 2016)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Angst, F/F, F/M, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, Gen, M/M, Multi, Mutual Pining, Post-Canon
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-12-06
Updated: 2020-05-26
Packaged: 2021-02-26 05:00:25
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 7
Words: 10,258
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21687970
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/cosmicchaotic
Summary: It's been two months since Mike's girlfriend and best friend had gone. And while things had been calm, Mike's days were boring and empty, which has given him time to reflect. He really wishes he'd appreciated it more before everything gets flipped upside down.
Relationships: Eleven | Jane Hopper/Maxine "Max" Mayfield, Joyce Byers/Jim "Chief" Hopper, Will Byers/Mike Wheeler
Comments: 14
Kudos: 70





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Yeah, I titled this one after another queen song, I'm gay, what about it. 
> 
> Let's be honest none of us know what Season 4 is gonna bring and if we have to wait another eleven months for it I'm going to lose my mind.
> 
> Also I didn't know how to describe this so I'm just giving it mysterious vibes.

It wasn’t that Mike had forgotten that he’d said he loved El, except he absolutely had forgotten he’d said he loved El. In front of all of his friends. It wasn’t really a lie. He did love El. But it had been a heat of the moment thing. He wanted to protect her. He didn’t want her risking her life when there could’ve been other options. That, and there was a little bit of a difference between loving someone and being in love with them.

Last time Mike had seen her, El had said she loved him too and kissed him. He'd been too stunned to kiss her back or even respond. Had he said that? He loved her? It didn’t seem like something he would do, but El wasn’t the kind of person to pull this on him out of the blue. That had been two months ago. He missed her. And he missed Will. And to be honest, he missed Joyce too. She’d been like a second mom to him. His own mom had no idea of what any of them had gone through the past couple of years, besides Will going missing and that weird visit from the Department of Energy at Hawkins lab.

He was going to visit them for Thanksgiving, and they’ be coming back to visit for Christmas. And he was looking forward to it. Ecstatic, even. Nancy was coming too, of course. She was driving. But probably equally excited to finally see Jonathan. Mike and Nancy had been getting on much more. Unsettlingly well, as far as their parents were concerned, not that they’d want to ruin it. The thing was, they’d gone through something their parents couldn’t imagine. They couldn’t even tell them. But it was a pretty unspoken rule that the Wheeler siblings were going to protect each other regardless of the cost.

He’d seen a little less of the party these days. Not that the party has disbanded, that would never happen, he hoped. But with Will gone, there hadn’t really been a reason to continue. Dustin spent a lot of time with Suzie on Cerebro. Or Lucas, Dustin and Max would go to the arcade. They’d lost two members of the party. Plus, Max and her parents were still dealing with the loss of Billy. He didn’t quite get the mourning, Billy sucked. Billy had tried to hit them with his car, Billy had tried to kill them. But then again, that wasn’t Billy. It was about as much Billy as Will sending the people at the Lab into a trap. The spy. And in his last moments, he’d protected El, and it had cost him his life. 

It was a little easier for Nancy, or Steve, or Robin or Jonathan. Mike saw them as grown ups, most of the time. They could drive, they could get jobs, or internships, or whatever it was that seniors and grownups did. And since everything seemed to have settled down now, they could do what they want. Occasionally he would remember, while he was only fifteen, Nancy was only eighteen. Jonathan and Robin were eighteen. Steve was nineteen. When he was a kid he’d thought that being a teenager meant you were basically a grown up. Hindsight would’ve been a nice thing. Here he was, realising they’d all been forced to grow up too fast. Even Erica, who was ten, had already had a run in with Russians. Russians. In Hawkins.

Mike felt bad. He’d said things he’d regretted. He'd spent so long focussing on El. Only El. Neglecting the party. Only he hadn’t realised it then. And who could blame him? Your first crush goes missing for a year just after you get your best friend back. And then shows up out of the blue when the same best friend is being possessed by some monster and your fourteen and you don’t know what your doing but your scared for your life. Your friends life. Your girlfriends life. Your sisters life. But Will had list the last two years of his life to the upside down. That’s wasn’t anyone’s fault. But Mike still felt bad, because Will wasn’t ready to leave behind childhood. A childhood they lost when they got sucked into a big mess. And to be honest? Neither was Mike. But it was too little too late.

They didn’t talk so much on Cerebro anymore, he and El. Max and El did. He really was glad that they’d become friends. Best friends, actually. Looking back, he had acted like an ass and gotten jealous about them spending time together. He guessed he could kind of understand why Will had snapped at him. If Will had suddenly started ignoring him in favour of some girl he met when Mike wasn’t around, he guessed he’d be mad too. They’d both said things they hadn’t meant. And deep down, he thought, if El had really wanted to get in touch with him, she could have. Her powers had started coming back. Slow at first. She really had exhausted herself at Starcourt and it had taken months for them to begin to show themselves. 

The days had continued to dwindle down. He was so ready to go. And yet he wasn’t at all. He hadn’t even started packing and Nancy had been nagging him about it. It’s not like they were going to some formal family dinner where they were going to have to say grace. Joyce didn’t expect them to show up dressed fancy. It was nice to go somewhere where things weren’t expected of him. They would be somewhere other people didn’t know him, not even his name. It would be nice, he thought, to have somewhere to go to have a fresh start. Rather than people pretend to know him and form opinions based on how fucked up everything had been the last two years. People knew about the kids at school. Not that schools really did anything about bullying. They’d only liked one teacher. Mr. Clarke. The teacher who Dustin had called at 10PM about building a sensory deprivation tank, for fun. The teacher who’ talked hypothetical wormholes between dimensions and had to have had some idea that the same kids who asked him the weirdest questions were always at the centre of everything. Come on. He had to have some theories.

The closer it got to leaving, the more anxiety Mike had. The more he had to tell himself it was anticipation and excitement. He hadn’t been a fan of confronting things. Any times he had been confronted or confronted anyone about something had gotten pretty messy. Usually followed by him profusely apologising. At least he’d packed. Or at least tried to pick smarter clothes. A couple of button-ups. This was going to be his first Thanksgiving not with his parents, who normally sorted everything out.

On the other hand, Eleven had been doing pretty okay. Or Jane, now, as they had called her at the school she and Will had been enrolled in. She'd been to school in Hawkins once, for the service they had held for Will, or rather to use their radio since it was stronger than the party's walkie talkies. The atmosphere was a lot different. But after everything, a real routine, something steady, and no monsters was the easiest change to adapt to. Not that she didn’t miss everyone, they were her first real friends, she did. But it had seemed to hit Will a lot harder, even though they’d managed to make new friends.

It was probably because he’d been around them so long. To just have to up and leave everyone you’d cared about had to have been hard. Jonathan had always been more independent than Will, and while it was clear he missed Nancy he seemed alright. He'd been a little older than Will when their dad had left, and was used to having to watch out for him. He guessed he’d have to watch out for El too, things were new to her in a way they weren’t for them but she’d done very well to adapt to everything changing so fast.


	2. I Love You

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “It isn’t fair on either of us. If our hearts aren’t in the right place, the same place. I know I’m still getting to grips with,” she motions in the air with her free hand. “Everything. And I need time too. To you know. Be me? I guess? To figure out me.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm going to do crimes now.

Mike had thrown off his seatbelt and opened the door before Nancy had even had a chance to switch off the engine. The door had thrown open immediately as if the hum of the car had alerted the Byers to their arrival. It was El that hit him first wrapping her arms around him into a hug. Her hair was big and up and she smelled like one of those perfume things that you got as testers in women’s magazines like his mum would wear. Joyce and Jonathan had come out too and Jonathan shot past them as Mike heard the click click of the car doors locking. 

Mike brought his arms around El to hug her, awkwardly kind of patting her on the back. Her eyes closed and face on his shoulder, smiling. Mike’s eyes are open, watching the door. Will hadn’t walked out, he was just leaning against the frame watching. And very unlike Will. Mike hadn’t known what he'd been expecting. He was still taller than Will, but now Will was much taller than Joyce. He'd had his hair cut, which had surprised him. And had seemed to have ditched his short shorts and jean shorts and polos in exchange for ripped jeans, band shirts and what were probably Jonathan’s old hand-me-down flannels. Mike felt either very over dressed or severely under dressed.

It felt like forever before El had let go, though in reality it had probably only been a matter of a dozen or so seconds. Nancy had moved onto hugging Joyce. El stepped back and Will finally came forward, a small smile before hugging will. Had it only been two months? It had been seven years since they'd been separated for so long. Before they’d even met. Even summer vacations had been shorter and after that Will had always been right around the corner, figuratively speaking.

El isn’t stupid. That was one of the big rules she'd had when she had been living with Hopper. Her dad, as she’d refer to him to the girls at school, who’d sadly passed away that year. Which is why she knew something was up. She wasn’t stupid, which is why she would call Max rather than use Cerebro. Max was her best friend and knew a lot more about people than El did. She was still learning. She'd still been excited for Mike coming for Thanksgiving. Not a tradition she completely understood but it seemed to excite everyone, plus it was an excuse to be able to see Mike. It would have been nice to see everyone from Hawkins but things took time and money to arrange.

She needed to talk to Mike. They hadn't talked much recently. And she knew that he knew they should’ve talked, and yet they still hadn’t. It was more of a face to face conversation they needed to have.  
“You look... different.” Mike says as he looks over Will.  
“Good different or bad different?” Will responds pushing his hair out of his eyes. He looks more grown up this way, Mike thinks.  
“G-good different.” Mike stutters out. He catches El’s eye. “Both of you. You look great.”  
It’s awkward. And Mike knows it’s awkward. El knows. Even Will knows. But it doesn’t stop them standing in silence. The unfortunate quietness allows Mike to think about his choices. Choice one: he tells El they need to talk before thanksgiving dinner, and it ruins the dinner. Or choice two: he procrastinate and postpones it, making the feeling of being uncomfortable to grow and last longer, maybe even chickening out of it at the last minute.

  
It’s to his relief and surprise when he and El are alone later. He probably should’ve talked to Nancy about this beforehand, she’d had more experience with relationship problems than he had, which not counting Eleven dumping his ass, was zero. Yet here they were, in El's room.   
“We need to talk.” El stated deadpan, but fidgeting with the blue hair tie on her wrist. Mike sighs inwardly but before he can start she interrupts him, “You’re breaking up with me.”

  
“What? I mean, why would you think that?” he blurs out in response.

  
“Am I wrong?” El replies. Mike bites his lip and shakes his head in response. “It’s okay, Mike. I understand.”

  
“I haven’t even said anything yet.”

  
“I know but you don’t love me. Because you be able to say it to me, to my face. But you can’t. And that’s not your fault.” She takes his hand, “I was mad, at first, when I realised. But I also realised that you are my first boyfriend. Were my first boyfriend. And we barely knew each other. And you were the first person who I trusted, who was my friend. And I guess I couldn’t tell the difference. Maybe I still can’t.”

  
“But you’re still important to me. I do care about you a lot. Really.”

  
“Yeah,” she says, not looking him in the eye. “You might love me, but only in the way you’d love Dustin, or Lucas. You’re still important to me too. But I think...”

  
“What do you think?”

  
“It isn’t fair on either of us. If our hearts aren’t in the right place, the same place. I know I’m still getting to grips with,” she motions in the air with her free hand. “Everything. And I need time too. To you know. Be me? I guess? To figure out me.”

  
Mike squeezes her hand gently. “I’ve never been broken up with for real before... I know it’s not like we’re not like we aren’t going to be friends or anything because we are, right.”

  
“Friends.” El smiles, then falters. “I did want to ask you though, I know he’s your best friend, how to get along with Will.”

  
“Will?”

  
“I mean, he’ll stick up for me and help with school stuff but... I don’t know. He avoids me, we don’t really talk much. I don’t want to push him, you know, if he doesn’t like me, I’m not his friend. But he is your friend. I want to fix it, whatever made him not like me, if I can.”

  
“I don’t know. But I don’t think he dislikes you. I’m really glad we talked. I didn’t know if I was going to do it or not. I know we needed to, I just kept putting it off.”

  
“We were both putting it off so that things wouldn’t change, because change is weird and hard and I don’t like it and neither do you.” She leans forward and hugs him again. More gentle, but somehow more intimate and comfortable at the same time.

  
This time he closes his eyes and hugs her tighter. “Thanks,” he whispers. “For making this less stressful. And being nice about it. You know I’m bad with explaining things. But you’re one of my favourite people and I’m glad we’re on good terms.”

  
“I love you, Mike.”

  
“Yeah, I love you too.”


	3. Crazy Together

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> AKA Petition to Give Will Byers a Break 
> 
> In which, I absolutely do not.

The thing is, Mike likes girls. He obviously likes girls because he dated Eleven, so he doesn’t like boys. Except, realistically, he knows there’s more to it than that. But he convinces himself anyway, because that’s all he can do. Sit and nod at dinner, answer questions at the right time, pass the gravy. He can use the excuse that he’s tired, maybe from the car journey and getting up early and he just needs some rest. He gets a funny look from Nancy but ignores it.

His bag is in Will’s room and Will follows him. “Are you okay?” He asks. “You seem kind of off.” Will sits on the bed, the covers and pillows are thrown on the floor with extra blankets. They’re too big to share a single bed like they would have as kids. It was weird for then to think about how little they had been when they met.

  
“El and I broke up.”

  
Will purses his lips but if he’ shocked, he doesn't show it. “Are you okay?”

  
“I think so.” Mike is kneeling in front of his backpack, taking things out to get to his pajamas. “I like the new look by the way. It’s good.” 

  
“Thanks,” Will smiles.

  
“I wasn’t expecting it. Or the haircut.”

  
“Nobody expects the Spanish inquisition.”

  
Mike looks back. “I never really got to apologise before.” He scratches his neck awkwardly. “Not properly. Things started happening so fast. The whole Billy and the mindflayer thing. I said some stuff, I’m sorry.”

  
“I said don’t sorry about it,” he scoffs. “Really, I’m over it. It’s fine, Mike.”

  
“When I spoke to El earlier, she seemed under the impression you kinda hated her.”

  
“I don’t. She hasn’t done anything, I have no reason to. Should I" Will gestured to Mike’s hand, “Talk to her? If you’re getting changed now.” 

  
Mike nods, “It can’t hurt. Plus you’re both my friends, it’s kind of important to me that you both get along.”

Will doesn’t hate El. He’s right, she hasn’t done anything to make him dislike her. In fact, if anything, she’s saved his life more than once. She’s saved his family and his friends too. Her door is slightly ajar but he knocks anyway, to be polite, before pushing it open and closing it behind him.

  
“Can we talk?” He asks.

  
“What about?” El is flipping through the pages of some old books from Hopper’s that they boxed up before the move.

  
“Mike said, well, he said you think I don’t like you.”

  
“Do you? Like me?”

  
“Of course.”

  
“You don’t act like it. Did he tell you we broke up?”

  
“Yeah,” Will nods. “I’m sorry.”

  
“You’re not really though. Last time you weren’t.”

  
“Yeah, but, those were for stupid reasons. It’s different now. A lot of stuff happened and we have to look out for each other. That’s how it is. That’s what friends do.”

  
“Friends don’t lie, Will.” She folds down the corner of the page and Will sits at the foot of the bed.

  
“I didn’t like you, originally, like in the beginning.” He shrugs, “You didn’t do anything wrong. You know how sometimes you can tell someone is different. And you know you’re different and you know other people can tell too.” El nods. Of course she does. She spent thirteen years in Hawkins lab. Stupid question, he thinks. “I guess, it was because I was jealous. Everyone else knew you before I met you. And when you turned up, Mike just wanted to spend all his time with you. Which meant he didn’t want to spend as much time with me and it felt bad to not feel important.”

  
“You were still his friend though.” 

  
“Yeah, but only his friend.” Will bit his lip, “But you were his girlfriend and... Have you ever been in love with someone and known they didn’t love you back?”

  
“Will...” El said softly.

  
“Have you?”

  
“No.”

  
“Then you don’t know. It’s not that I don’t like you. You’re great. It’s just hard to be around you. Because of you being with him.” Will looks shaky and as though he’s trying not to cry, but sounds more angry than upset even though he isn’t mad at her at all. His breathing is shaky too.

  
“Will... Are you in love with Mike?” And he just looks at her, “But you never said anything.”

  
“How? What can I say? Hey, man, please don’t hate me but I think I’m in love with you. I know this reflects badly on both of us and I will never hear the end of it at school because everyone already knows I’m gay and make fun of me without me even acknowledging it.”

  
“Why is it bad?”

  
“C'mon, El. You’re not stupid. You know how those kids were in Hawkins. Even my dad knew before I did and wanted to change me for it. Jonathan barely even counts him as our dad any more and I don’t blame him.”

  
“Does Jonathan know?”

  
“Yeah. He knows. Kind of. He knew what dad thought. But he says he doesn’t care, and not to listen to him. Lonnie, I mean. Our dad. I don’t know if you gathered, but people don’t like when you’re different.” Will’s jaw is clenched but he keeps talking, tugging at the duvet beneath him. “I tried to make it go away. I tried to dance with a girl at the Snowball. But nothing worked. I though maybe it would be different here. Maybe I just needed a change to grow up and maybe I would like girls.”

  
“It’s okay.” She leans forward and places her hand on his. “If you want it to be a secret, I’ll keep it. Just between us, okay? Because we’re friends.”

It’s a while before Will gets back to his room. The light is on and the curtain is drawn and Mike is fiddling with the Rubik’s Cube on Will's dresser. When he looks up Will gives him a thumbs up and Mike grins. Will gives him a small smile but doesn’t return it. In the distance they can hear Nancy and Jonathan sharing dishes duty as plates click against each other.

“What’s the matter? Are you okay? Did I do something? I thought you just sorted things with El.” Mike stands when Will shakes his head.

  
“I didn’t want to tell Mom or Jonathan. Like, they’re already doing so much without having to worry about me, again.” 

  
Mike moves to stand next to Will but will isn’t looking at him, he’s watching the empty hallway and flinches when Mike puts his hand on Will’s shoulder. “Is something wrong? Is it-"

  
“When I went missing, I don’t know how it happened. One minute I was there and then the next thing I was in the upside down,” Will explained quietly. “Everyone else that got dragged there, they died. All the people they sent in. Dead or wearing those full body suits, like they use for like quarantine with medical epidemics. I was down there for nearly a week. While I was down there I still spoke to my mom, I called, she put the lights up for me. I spoke to her through the wall.”

  
“I know, Will. You know I’m here, if you want to talk about it, you can always call too, if I’m not like, physically here.”

  
“I’m not finished, Mike.” Mike mouths sorry but Will waves him off. “It’s not just that. I mean, that’s when it started, I think. But after that. I used to see the upside down, I could see the mindflayer. And even after it was out of me, I could still feel it. I could feel when it was activated and when it was still there. I tried to ignore it but... Things have been happening. And the feeling just doesn’t go. And I know the gate is closed. El closed it. Hopper died so that the Russians couldn’t open it again. I know it sounds so stupid. I though if we did get out of Hawkins, we’d be far enough gone for everything to go back to normal.”

  
“I don’t understand. I’m trying. I don’t know what you’re getting at. I want to, I really want to. I want to help, maybe your Mom-"

  
“No.” Will states blankly. “I waited two months in case it stopped, I waited till I could talk to you. I love my mum and I trust her but I can’t burden her with this.” He looks up. “Jonathan has replaced that bulb six times in two weeks.” He gestures to the boarded up window. “Smashed twice, I didn’t even touch it. No curtains because they just caught fire.”

  
“But what does it have to do with you?”

  
“Because I did it, Mike.” He whispers. Then in a low voice, “Please don’t ask how because I don’t know. But I know it’s me. And I’m wondering, what if it’s all me. The demogorgon, the mindflayer, the upside down. What if it’s all linked somehow. I cast fireball and roll a seven, the demogorgon gets me, then it really gets me. What if I cast protection. Maybe I would’ve gotten home and this wouldn’t have happened. Then the mindflayer, it came for me last year before anyone else. And on the other side of the gate is Hawkins.”

  
“You can’t blame yourself for that. And I’m telling you nobody else does. We know El is the one that opened the gate and she didn’t do it on purpose and it’s not her fault either.”

  
Will sighs and rifles through the books in the cabinet beside the bed. “I think something’s still out there. I don’t know what. I barely know what’s going on with me. I’ve been... hypothesizing.” Will points to a page. “You guys were calling it the demogorgon before I even got back. The mindflayer works fundamentally the same way it does in DnD. And seeing things like, like the Veil of Shadows.” He flips through to another page. “Plus, the demogorgon and mindflayer both have an aversion to, or can be hurt by fire. Or El. What if the upside down is just what’s waiting for us. Like, the future. Or a parallel universe where everything would’ve been the same, but a gate opened and it was destroyed.”

  
“This is... a lot to take in. You really are the party's wizard Will.”

  
“I know it sounds crazy. Believe me, I think I’m crazy too. It makes no sense, but it’s still...” he trails off.

  
“Yeah, it’s insane.” Mike smiles slightly, “But I told you. We’ll go crazy together.”

  
“I just, don’t want anyone to get hurt anymore. I couldn’t lose you guys and I need you guys safe.” 

  
“Will, we aren’t going anywhere. We’ll work this out, I promise. Whatever this is.” 

  
“You shouldn’t make promises you can keep, Michael.” He responds, teasingly.

  
“Yeah? And what about you and these secret superpowers you have, huh?”

  
“They’re not superpowers,” he says picking up one of the pillows from the floor. “They are problems out of my control and like considerably less cool than like telekinesis and stuff.” He smacks Mike with it.


	4. The Very Late Obligatory Christmas Chapter

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Byers family come for Christmas.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm sorry this took so long I'm am so very tired all the time and I'm also illiterate and gay.

Karen knew something was wrong when Jane had stopped calling. That, and Mike had barely answered the phone in the last couple of weeks. He’d also spent most of his time in his room or the basement rather than out on bikes. She knew she was probably being paranoid. After all, her kids were teenagers now, and they had to grow up sometime. Though, losing your best friend to find out he wasn’t actually dead and then them being hospitalised and then moving away would take a toll on anyone. Nancy knew something was up when upon hearing from Steve, who heard from Dustin, who’d heard from Lucas, who'd heard from Max, that Mike And El had broken up, and insisted Mike had made the biggest mistake and lost the best thing to ever happen to him. Even though, he had pointed out, it had been a mutual decision. And it didn’t bother him, he didn’t seem too upset. And whatever it was he wasn’t going to open up about it.

In truth, he wasn’t as upset as he thought he would have been a few months back. Sure it was a change, it was different, but it wasn’t bad. It wasn't something he hadn’t seen coming for a little while. In fact, he hadn’t really thought about it at all. But they would be there soon, all of them staying over for winter break. Him and Will having a sleepover down in the Wheeler’s basement almost felt like it would be oddly normal. Or as normal as it could be. His mind kept going back to thanksgiving. The relief of being broken up. The way his chest hurt a little when Will had called him Michael. And after everything, things being just a little bit okay. Everything would be okay eventually.

  
It’s when there’s a knock at the door, there’s a distinct change. A yell of, “I’ll get it!” as Mike opens his door and practically flies down the stairs to answer it.   
When he swings it open, he’s there, hoisting a rucksack over his shoulder, and Mike grins. The others are still getting their bags from the car, Joyce is looking over and shaking her head, but she’s smiling.

  
When El comes over she smiles fondly and says “Hey.”

  
And then Mike’s mom appears, holding Holly and ruins what he felt like was a really nice, peaceful moment. Mike looks sheepish and moves out the way to let them in. Max, Lucas and Dustin would be over soon too, since everyone would be in Hawkins this time. The house was going to be packed. On one hand, it would be fun, like old times. Everyone hanging out. On the other hand, Mike kinda just wanted to be alone. He knows everyone has good intentions, but it doesn’t make a difference.

They're setting up the sleeping bags when the finally get to talk.

  
“You kept it, huh?” Mike tilts his head a little confused so Will continues. “DnD.”

  
“Oh. Yeah, yeah. I didn’t wanna throw it away but nobody really seems to want to play anymore.” Mike shrugs, “Did you ever ending up joining a new party?”  
Will shakes his head. “This was something we all did together.”

  
“And now it’s all like...” Mike trails off.

  
“Not the same.” Will nods. “Yeah. I miss how it used to be.”

  
“Did you tell her? Your mom.”

  
“No. Not yet.”

  
“Will-"

  
“I know, Mike. I need to do it I just- I can’t do that to her right now. She’s been through enough. Me, Bob, Hopper. I just want to be normal for her for once. To be able to take care of myself.”

  
“And I understand that,” Mike says softly in a tone pretty much only reserved for Will. “But you can’t keep secrets like this from her. We all went through stuff, you especially. I know what you’re thinking, but telling her isn’t going to burden her with it. I know your mom. She loves you.”

  
“Tell her what?” The boys had been so focused they hadn’t even notice El coming downstairs. She did that sometimes. 

  
Will and mike look at each other for a few seconds but Mike is the first one to open his mouth, “Will wont tell anyone that we think he has some kind of upsidedown-y powers because he thinks that it’ll just make everything worse.” Will hits his shoulder but not very hard, Mike doesn’t flinch. “Don’t you think that of all people El is the best person to tell. She already has freaking superpowers.”

*

It’s dark and he’s running. The air is wrong and his chest is hurting but he knows he has to keep going but he doesn’t know if he can outrun it but he continues anyway. If only he could find somewhere to hide, he was good at hiding, that’s how he kept safe last time. But no, nothing but a vast expanse of trees in the forest. It was getting close, he could hear it breathing, if that’s what it was, breathing. The loud crunch of leaves, twigs and broken branches as it got closer. Suddenly there’s a fence stopping him from moving forward. He tries to run along it but it’s too late. When he tries to catch his breath, it’s there.

He’s sat upright, breathing heavily and in a cold sweat. It’s still dark but the trees are gone, the sky is gone and it’s warm.

  
“Will, are you okay?” Mike whispers. Will can hear him fumbling about, cursing when he stumbles about. There’s a click. Nothing happens. “The lights out.” There's more shuffling before a small flashlight lights up a little.

  
“Sorry,” Will says quietly.

  
"You don’t need to apologise, it’s not your fault.” He swings the flashlight around. “You’re bleeding.” 

  
Will puts his hand to his face, it comes away red, but there's not too much. “It happens sometimes...”

  
“Bad dream?” Mike asks and Will nods. Mike puts his hand on his shoulder and looks into his eyes. “Nothing can get to you now. They’re gone. The demogorgon is gone. The dogs are gone. The mindflayer is gone. You're safe. I’m here. I’ll tell my mom the light went out in the night, my dad will fix it. Everything’s going to be okay.”

  
“Thanks, Mike.” They both smile.

  
Mike looks at his watch. It reads 6:23. He then reaches for a piece of paper and a pen. “I have something to show you. I was gonna wait but I think it’ll make you feel better. Get changed, I’ll meet you at the back door, I just gotta leave a note for my Mom so she doesn’t freak out or anything when she wakes up.”

  
Will is out the back door before Mike, who walks his bike around. "Oh, I didn’t being my bike, I-"

"You can ride with me,” Mike replies.

It’s only with Will so close behind him Mike realises it might have been a bad idea. It’s not dangerous. He doesn’t not like it, in fact it quite the opposite. Will holding onto him to steady himself so he doesn’t fall off. He's warm too. He feels weird and confused but pushes it to the back of his mind as he keeps cycling in the wind.

  
“Are we going to my house,” Will asks when they pass Mirkwood. Though, they don’t live there anymore.

  
“Not quite,” Mike says as they come to a stop. “We'll have to walk a bit from here.” They walked the bike between the trees for a while and there it was. All fixed and new.

“Castle Byers?” Will said, shocked, looking between Mike and Castle Byers. “But I- I destroyed it, it was gone. It...”

  
“I asked my dad to come and help me rebuild it. I thought if you ever came back it might make you happy I know it was important to you and I know you were upset that day and it was my fault and I wanted to make it up to you, so... Surprise.”

  
“Mike, I- I don’t know what say, I-“

  
Will stood in awe. It was peaceful and quiet and Will was happy and he was happy, which was all he’d wanted.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> on god im sorry this took so long if theres a while between updates i am continuing but i just do it as i go but i will write


	5. When You Started This Chapter And The Notes For The Future Chapters Before Yesterday And Now I'm Losing My Mind

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> There's a power cut. There's crying. Being a teenager in 1985 when you're gay and have superpowers is stressful.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am screaming. I am yelling. I am yelling and screaming.

  
The room is pitch black and there's a hum of radio static. El sobs quietly. Downstairs, the Wheelers and Byers are watching a Christmas Carol. The Party had dropped by earlier to exchange gifts. It had been great. Dinner had been amazing. She’d seen Max for the first time in months. When there’s a shuffling noise outside El quickly wipes her face. The door creaks and a switch clicks. Light illuminates the room. Her eyes are red and puffy. There’s still blood smeared above her lip.

  
Will walks slowly and leans over to turn the radio dial down, and then moves his hand to her shoulder. She just looks back at him. “Couldn’t find him?” She shakes her head. Will looks over to the doorway where Mike is standing awkwardly while he brings El into a hug, her forehead resting on his chest. “She’s been looking for him. Hopper. Since she started getting her powers back.” Will sighs. “She’s exhausting herself and she’s trying her best but...”

“Have you tried?” Mike asks.

“It doesn’t work like that. We’re not the same. Even if we did have the same powers, El's been learning how to use them for the last decade. I wouldn’t know where to start.”

“He means I know how to control it.” She says, muffled, pulling away. “I barely know the first thing about teaching you how. And God knows you need to learn.” She pauses. “I get the bad dreams too. But sometimes I know they’re dreams. Sometimes I don’t and it feels like we’re in danger all over again and I cant save everyone. I couldn’t- I couldn’t save my-" Her voice breaks and she bites her lip, willing herself not to cry, again, in front of Will and Mike.

“That wasn't your fault.” Will and Mike say at the same time. Mike continues. “If anyone's to blame it’s the Russians. Or Brenner and those people who worked at the Lab. None of us could do anything. You’d already pushed yourself too far. Without you, who else could’ve been hurt. Not even just us, this entire town. I’m going to get some paper towels.” He adds abruptly and walks off.

They both watch him as he leaves. “You don’t think it’s over, do you?” 

“Do you?”

Will shakes his head, “Something feels off but I don’t know what it is yet. I-" He’s cut off when Mike walks in with the paper towels and hands them to El.

“You know, I was thinking.” He starts with.

“That’s a first,” Will replies.

Mike scowls. “Anyway. What if El could teach you how to, you know, do the thing, use your powers but like, properly. I know they aren’t the same. El's more Jean Gray. ”

“I’m more... Creates gross fleshy wormholes to escape from monsters and then disappears and talks using Christmas lights. I don't think there’s any mutants that do that.”

“Who’s Jean Gray?” El asks.

“Oh, in the X-men. They’re pretty much superheroes with cool powers and stuff.”

“Like Wonder Woman?” El says, the boys look at each other. “Max showed me some back in Summer.”

“Kind of. She’s from DC. This is Marvel.” Mike replies. “They’re both pretty cool, though. Do you think you could? Do it?”

I don’t know. It’s not just like, Math. Or l words you just learn. It’s... Kali said, basically, you need to concentrate on what you want but feeling really strong feelings. Or a really strong feeling. Like anger or something. Something you’re really mad about.”

“Okay.” Will says. “Now what?”  
“Uh... I guess... Maybe turn the light off?” Mike shrugs. “I really did not think this far ahead.” 

  
Will close his eyes. A few moments pass. Will furrows his brows and clenches his jaw. A second. Two seconds. Everything goes dark. “Did it work?” There’s a cry from downstairs. He opens his eyes. “I guess that answers one question.” The crying continues. There’s footsteps outside that stop at the door. 

“Is everyone okay? The power’s out. Do you have your flashlight? You know Holly hates the dark.” It’s Karen's voice.

“We're fine, Mom. And No, not on me, it’s in the basement. It’ll probably come back on in a minute.” Mike responds. He waits for her to go back downstairs. He turns to Will, “Do you think you can do it again?”

Will nods, and then remembers Mike wont see him in the dark. “I think so.” He takes a deep breath, putting all his thought into it, clenching his fist. The room lights up around them and they all blink and squeeze their eyes shut. 

Mike’s the first one to open his eyes and in a second he’s by Will with the left over paper towels, looking worried. “Will! You’re bleeding.” Will puts his hand under his nose. Blood. Mike brings the paper towel to his face. “What did you think of to get so mad you wiped the power out?”

“I wasn’t mad.” Will takes Mike’s hand and the paper towel away from his face. “Remember when I had the Mindflayer in me? And you were talking about how we met. First grade, the swing set. I remember. You said it was the best think you’d ever done. I remember saying yes because that was the best thing I’d ever done.” Though he’s a little lightheaded and tired, he's pretty smug and happy with himself.

Mike’s heart flips.

*** 

Slowly, everyone excuses themselves throughout the evening. The night grows dark. The Christmas lights go off. Holly is put to bed, before Mike’s parents dismiss themselves, leaving Joyce alone. Nancy and Jonathan had snuck away earlier in the evening and the boys had left El shortly after the power cut escapade. It’s early in the morning, before dawn when Eleven wakes up and tries again. No matter how many times she fails, she can’t help but hope next time will be different. This time. It is different.

El's eyes snap open at the same time Will wakes up panting. El wipes her face with her sleeve and slips out the door down to the living room where Joyce is on the couch. She’s frantic. She’s trying to shake her awake, and it works. And Joyce is filled with concern and is about to ask if she’s okay when Mike and Will appear on their way to Mike’s room to find El.

“Did you see it too?” El asks. Will nods.

“See what?”

“My Dad.” El responds and the same time Will whispers, “It's back.”


	6. Ah Shit Here We Go Again

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Y'all ever heard of repressed gay mutual pining? But everyone is gay? Everyone is super gay? Actually some people are bi? But that's kinda gay? Robin is a lesbian and that's super gay. Good for her.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I guess we're all having a time in this lockdown. I'm not dead. I'm just really bad at doing things. I hope you guys are doing okay.

They’re all sat around the old junkyard. The one where the party had hidden from the people at Hawkins' Lab. Where the kids had brought Steve to lure the Demodogs. They’d needed somewhere big, away from other people, to meet. They’d been on the phone to pass on the message, everyone making different excuses to be gone. Staggering their leaving time to not arouse suspicion. They were all there. Mike, Will, Dustin, Lucas, El, Max, Joyce, Jonathan, Nancy, Steve and Robin. Erica had been at Tina’s and Lucas hadn’t wanted her involved again if this was serious, she was only ten, not that they had been much older when Will had gone missing. Murray was still in Illinois, Joyce had said she would update him once everyone knew everything that was going on.

  
The mood was tense, nobody knew who would speak first. It was obviously something they’d been dreading, hoping it wouldn’t come. Until Dustin breaks the silence.

  
“Is anyone going to tell us what’s going on?” 

El, Mike and Will share a look. 

  
Will starts,”It’s back.” He sighs and Mike puts his hand on Wills shoulder. “At least, I think it’s back. But... Maybe not the same one. I just know it’s out there.”

  
“Are you sure it isn’t just a nightmare?” Asks Lucas. “Like the other times?”

  
“It’s not a nightmare.” Mike defends Will, who winces and shakes off his hand.

  
“I have my own voice, Mike.” He looks at Lucas. “I don’t think so. I know what you mean, but no. It’s like... The dreams, the nightmares, they feel real. But I wake up and it’s gone. When it’s a nightmare, it’s after me. This time...” He pauses, rubbing his neck. “This time. It’s still there. Like I can feel it. And I don’t think it’s alone this time.”

  
Rationally, Will knows Mike was only trying to help and that it didn’t warrant him snapping. The thing is, he knows if anybody else had said it, he would’ve thanked them. But when it’s Mike... It’s Mike. And when Mike’s in his head all his thoughts and feelings get jumbled up. 

  
“Then what can we do about it?” Asks Robin, who until then had been pretty quiet. She still felt mostly like an outsider. Kind of like she was only being tolerated because she was Steve’s best friend. Will shrugs his shoulders slightly. Turning in on himself to make him look smaller, as if he wants to disappear. After the outburst, she doesn’t blame him. She wouldn’t notice if it wasn’t something she hadn’t done a thousand times. She doesn’t bring it up.

“That’s not all.” El adds.

  
Max's eyes lift from the patch of grass she'd been pulling out of the ground with her hands, now covered in dirt and grass stains. “Did you see it too?”

El shakes her head. “I was awake. I was looking... for my dad.” Max reaches out to place her hand on her knee, she’s about to console her, seeing the tears in her best friend's eyes. But she finishes. “And I found him.” El losing her powers wasn’t exactly a secret. Nobody had really spoken about it beyond just waiting and hoping. They hadn’t known she’d been looking. Until now, Joyce had been keeping quiet, listening to her kids. She’d assumed that both Will and Eleven had experienced the same vision or dream. El looked at her apologetically.

“But. He- he died. I saw.” Joyce manages to stutter out.

  
“I don’t know how to explain it. I just, I know its him. He was... he had no hair, like when you guys found me. And it was really cold. Like ice and snow cold. But I couldn’t understand anything they were saying. I don’t know where he was, just that he was unhappy... and they were building something.” She bit her lip. “I’m sorry. That’s all I know. I wanted to try again but... I was so tired, it was so much.” 

  
“No, no. You did so good.” Is the best Joyce can do to avoid crying. Trying to keep up the facade of being strong, since most of these kids didn’t have an adult they could just go home and explain it all to. “Now, at least, we have something to go on.”

  
“We don’t exactly have a lot of information on where he is.” Lucas says.

  
“Or where the demogorgon is. Or they are.” Will adds.

  
“It probably wasn’t America. We haven’t had snow this year.” Steve points out. “Russia’s cold right?”

  
“Yes, Steve. Russia is cold.” Robin replies.

  
“You see, when you use that voice I can’t tell whether you’re being sarcastic or it is genuinely cold. What I mean is, if Eleven couldn’t understand a word of what they were saying. And it’s really cold. And the Russians were involved with opening up the gate back in Summer-"

  
“Then who’s to say they don’t have anything to do with it this time.” Dustin finishes for him.

  
“Yes! Wait, that’s not a good thing.”

  
“Okay, genius. That still doesn’t give us a how, though.” Robin replies.

  
“I have a suggestion.” Dustin starts, “But you aren’t going to like it.”

  
“You could say literally anything, at this point. It doesn’t have to make sense. None of this has ever made any sense.”

  
“There’s someone doing an inside job.” He pauses, but nobody interrupts. “Somebody knew about the gate under Hawkins’ Lab and passed that information along. That’s bad, but it could be a lot worse. We were just assuming that this is the only gate. And that this is the only place that gave been doing experiments on people. There’s gotta be at least ten other people from Hawkins. People that have gone missing, or died. We don’t know this is an isolated event. I don’t thing the Russians fully grasp what they’re dealing with here. Or what they intend to do with it.”

  
“Maybe as a weapon.” Lucas chimes in. “I mean, an actual Russian spy being in Hawkins isn’t that far fetched. The US and Russian army aren’t exactly friends. I don’t mean to be rude but Eleven was probably also meant to be used as a weapon. You’ve seen what she can do, why wouldn’t they try to utilize that.”

  
“It’s different though. Demogorgons are monsters, they’re not dumb but they kill and stuff on instinct. You cant control them.” Max argues. “You can’t control El either. But she’s a person. She has thoughts and feelings and morals. She can understand and negotiate.”

  
“And I agree, but you didn’t meet her when we did. She was a lot less... personable.” Lucas shrugs sheepishly, “Sorry. I didn’t mean it in like a bad way or anything.” Eleven merely nods, she knows they both remember when she’d hurt him in a moment of anger and fear without even intending to.

“This is all... quite a lot to take in, I think, in one go.” It was quite easy to forget Nancy and Jonathan had been there at all, if he hadn’t spoken up. Not that they had ever been loud or talkative in the first place. The most shocking part, to him, was that he hadn’t heard anything about it. Sure, he and El didn’t have that much of a relationship besides the protective older brother instinct, or much in common. But Will? Will had changed. Normally, Will would have come to him, but now it seemed like Will had completely closed himself off.

And normally, Mike would have pushed Will. He would have nudged him. Nagged him to tell everyone that isn’t all. There’s more. This time, he didn’t. He had the feeling Will would snap at him again and he didn’t want Will mad at him. He’d stayed quiet the rest of the conversation, though he’d kind of spaced out. As though he was looking at it all from the outside while his mind drifted. Torn between the thought of how much he cared about Will, but how strained and uncomfortable it was in all the bits in between. When he knew Will had something to say, but not to him. And the things that he wanted to say. But got caught up in his brain. And then there were the things that he know would have to be said, and that everything was going downhill and he was going to run out of time and options. 

"I told you, you werent going to like it."

Robin folds her arms. “So, what are we going to do about it?”


	7. Max Mayfield's Bisexual Therapy Club

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Are you bisexual? Do you have repressed homoerotic feelings? Did you spend your teenage years being dumb as hell? This club may be for you.

In Max's defence, she thought going home was a dumb idea. What kind of plan was wait until we figure it out or find more information. A dumb one, that was what. If there was a chance that Hopper was alive, maybe that meant Billy could be alive too. It wouldn’t be the most shocking thing in Hawkins. And, even after everything, a little bit of her hoped he was. That maybe things would be different now. They’d had to throw a funeral without a body to bury, and Max had had to pretend she’d known nothing about it. She'd been with her new best friend, who’s dad had also suspiciously passed in the same traffic event.

She hadn’t really talked about it. She couldn’t very well tell her mom and her stepdad her brother had been possessed by a creature from another dimension. Joyce had been gone. El had been gone. Lucas wasn’t the most empathetic person though she hadn’t really tried. It had been complicated. An off again on again relationship. Yeah they were friends, but it wasn’t all that. It wasn’t the spark, the childhood sweetheart image the movies always portrayed. Maybe that wasn’t even real. Maybe it was and she just wasn’t going to be lucky enough to find the one. Maybe the whole love thing was a little overrated.

Plus there was high school. It wasn’t a big deal, it wasn’t the first time Max had gone to a new school. At least she’d known people this time. But three angsty teenage boys were hardly the most ideal company. If she was being honest, the whole situation was kind of isolating. Lonely, even. Mostly, she missed El. Before the battle of Starcourt, they’d only briefly started becoming friends. And it was only a couple of months before she’d been gone. If she had thought about it a little more, and she had, she would think about how she was probably El's first friend by choice, not from circumstances or necessity and being chased down by bad men.

It wasn’t really like Mike, to be aimlessly cycling, alone. It wasn’t even that he had a destination in mind. Usually it would be to Will’s. Or Dustin’s. It would be a campaign. It would be spending time with his best friends. It would be Galaga and Dig Dug at the arcade. Especially with Will home. And Will was mad at him. Again. He just kept doing things and saying things that led Will to snapping. He didn’t mean to, he really didn’t. His mind had been so occupied that he hadn’t even thought about the rest of the meeting. It had all kind of blurred. Now, here he was stood staring at a door, as if he could will it open with the power of thought.

***

  
He hadn’t meant to do it. He would gave apologised, probably, if Mike hadn’t taken off the minute the conversation had ended. He felt bad. The look on El's face said that he wasn’t the only one who had noticed. She wasn’t the only one who had noticed. His brother had been quiet, they’d been whispering, him and Nancy. Catching glances, looking away if he saw them. 

The first thing he’d done had been to go straight to the basement and hope that nobody had followed him. Minutes passed and Mike hadn’t come back. An hour, two. No Mike. When he finally ventured upstairs his mom was on the phone. She was arranging things, to stay in town, but they couldn’t just stay here, even if Karen did say it was fine. They didn’t know how long they would be staying. She looked exhausted, not that Will would have told her that. He was worried. He was worried about his mom. About the demogorgon. About Mike. Last time they’d fought, it hadn’t lasted long. Mike had shown up, worried about him too, apologetic. 

***

  
“Sweetie? Your friend is here.” Her mom calls up the stairs. Max is flicking her way through one of her Wonder Woman comics.

  
“El!” She jumps up from her bed. The door creaks open and she slumps back down, grabbing the comic back into her hands. “You.”

  
“Nice to see you too.” Mike deadpans. His mouth is a line. They stand in silence for a moment before he closes the door and sits on the edge of her bed. He thinks her parents must trust her a lot, to have a boy in her room and not complaining about it not being open three inches. Not that anything would happen between them.

  
It’s another minute before Max looks back up at him. “Are you here for any reason? Or?” He shrugs. “Is this about Will?” He looks at her. “Dude, you have to get over yourself. People are gone be mad at you. You just gotta deal with that.”

  
“It’s not that,” he bursts out. “Okay, it’s a little that. But like, I’m fine with that. Well, not fine. Will’s been mad at me before and it sucks. But like, that time I was a jackass and I deserved it a little. But, this time?” He shrugs again. “I don’t know why I can’t stand it. It’s not like I had that problem when El and I broke up. The first time. I was just mad because she was mad at me and it wasn’t fair and I shouldn’t have lied but it wasn’t my fault.”

  
Max sighs, putting her comic down. “Have you tried talking to him?”

  
“What?” He blinks. “No. He doesn’t give me a chance. He gets all mad and tells at me and runs off.”

  
“You ran off today.”

  
“It’s complicated. You wouldn’t understand.”

  
“You’re so full of yourself, you know. Maybe I would if you explained it. What did you even fight about?”

  
“Will wanted to play DND and me and Lucas weren’t in the mood. We kinda ruined it. Some things were said. I guess got him mad.”

  
“What, specifically did you say?”

  
“I can’t remember it exactly.” Mike sighs. “I said that we were hardly going to play games in my basement forever. We were going to get girlfriends and stuff and grow up and it’s not on me that Will doesn’t want a girlfriend yet. Not in a bad way. I know he’s been through stuff we haven’t.”

  
“Have you considered Will doesn’t want a girlfriend.”

  
“That’s what I was saying.”

  
“I mean ever, Mike.”

  
“Oh.” Mike stares at the floor and scratches his neck.

  
“What?”

  
“N-nothing.” He stands up, and then sits back down. “I-"

  
“Sometimes boys like girls. Sometimes boy don’t like girls, sometimes they l-" 

  
“I know that. I’m not an idiot. I- Obviously I like girls, right? That’s why I went out with El, who is a girl.”

  
“Well done for noticing with your keen observation, Watson.” She rolls her eyes. “Things aren’t always black and white. Just because you date one girl doesn’t make you straight As much ad dating one guy would make you gay.”

  
“Straight...”

  
“Like my parents, your parents, most of our parents probably. I think, anyway. Maybe not and I just don’t know. It’s not like everyone does around being like ‘Hello, I respect you regardless of who you like or your gender identity.’” 

  
“Max.”

  
“Yeah?”

  
“I’m really kinda freaked out right now.”

  
“Yeah, I know.”

  
“How do you know?”

  
“Because you said it was complicated and that I wouldn’t understand. And yet here I am. Talking about this. With you of all people.” She shifts around the bed till she’s sat next to him. “Listen, I get it. It feels weird at first. It’s like you’re a little confused and lost and there’s nowhere safe to turn to and you don’t know who to trust.” 

  
Finally, Mike turns to look at her, for the first time since he entered the room. She’s not as loose and carefree as normal. There’s no smugness in her tone, like she’s going like she’s just going to rip into him at any give time. It’s not that he hadn’t thought about it. He’d thought about it until his head hurt. Till the sun started coming up and he hadn’t slept.

  
“I’m like that person I would’ve expected you to come to.”

  
“I don’t even remember planning to come here. I just, was. Maybe it’s because you’re not Will, or El. You’re not related to me. I haven’t known you as long as Dustin and Lucas. Maybe it would hurt less if you turned around and slammed the door in my face.”

  
Max laughs quietly. “I hardly know what I’m doing either. This is Max Mayfield’s Bisexual Therapy Club.” She gestures to her room. Mike winced at the mention and she gently elbows him in the chest. “Next on the agenda is dealing with you’re repressed homoerotic feelings for your best friend.”

  
Mike chokes on his own air and spit. “My what? Me? I-" She gives him an unthreatening glare. “I don’t even know what that means.”

  
“It means you’ve spent the last fifteen years so sure and convinced of heterosexuality you literally haven’t picked up on any real life subtext that your best friend is in love with you and had you not been dumb as hell you probably would be holding hands right now.”

  
“What about you? You said this was a club.”

  
“This isn’t about me.”

  
“It’s a little bit about you, though. You can’t just brush past what you said and pin this all on me. I ready feel like I need to just lay in bed for three days. Gender identity? Is that like, uh...”

  
Max bites her lip. “You know there’s boys and there’s girls. And sometimes the news will mention boys who want to be girls and girls who want to be boys. Except that’s not really politically correct because they don’t know what they’re saying and they’re wrong.”

  
“Are you saying you want to be a boy is that why everyone calls you Max?”

  
“No. That’s not, quite, it. My parents call me Maxine... Sometimes it’s like... I’m not a boy. And I’m all for female empowerment but it’s like, I’m not a girl. It’s really confusing and I think gender is not only a social construct but a scam. People just feel things for who they are and how your born has nothing to do with the person you are. Not everyone has to be strictly a boy or a girl. And I should’ve have to dress any kind of way to prove who I am to people, especially people who don’t think I exist. I like the clothes I wear, I like my hair how it is. I’m not gonna change my hobbies like games are for boys and female superhero comics are for girls.” She looks up at Mike, “Sorry, I kept going on, I probably don’t make any sense.”

  
“I’m not gonna lie, I don’t completely know if I got it. I just know that you’re Max. And if that’s what you want to be called, that’s what I call you. And if you decided you wanted us to call you Maxine then I’d do that, obviously. Or if you just like did away with all of it.”

  
“Thanks... I’ve never actually told anyone any of this before... I don’t want to get all emotional and seem like a baby, damn. I’m not going to cry in front of Mike Wheeler.”

  
“Technically, I have seen you cry. Once.”

  
“Shut up.” Max says but they’re both smiling. “Do you think, maybe we can keep this between us for a while. Not that I’m ashamed of anything and neither should you be, I just, I’d like more time to figure things out.” He nods and picks up Max's comic. “Yeah, that’s Issue 328. It’s pretty good, plus I mean, come one. Diana Prince AND Greek Gods...”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> if ur non binary and ur reading this *chefs kiss* incredible


End file.
